Minot State highlights new engineering, counseling and nursing programs and workforce partnerships

President Shirley of Minot State University told the Higher Education Institutions Committee that the campus generally shows a strong financial record and several program expansions aimed at meeting regional workforce needs.

Shirley opened by summarizing recent state and federal audits, saying most reviews showed no significant findings and that the campus had addressed procedural issues the auditor identified. "We've really had a pretty darn good clean bill of health, from a financial standpoint," she said.

Why it matters: Minot State officials framed new degree programs, facility renovations and targeted scholarships as tools to grow graduates in fields the state needs — particularly nursing, speech‑language pathology, special education and a newly approved undergraduate engineering degree.

New and growing programs: Shirley said nursing remains the university’s largest undergraduate major, and she highlighted ten other in‑demand programs. Brian Schmidt, chair of Minot State’s science department, described an "Innovation Engineering" bachelor’s degree that the campus and the State Board approved and the Higher Learning Commission green‑lit last week. Schmidt said the curriculum will front‑load applied engineering work and pair math instruction with hands‑on engineering courses so students see immediate application. He told lawmakers the program had attracted 24 applicants quickly and that he expects 20–25 students in the first year.

Shirley and faculty discussed other growth areas: cybersecurity (designated as a national center of excellence by the Department of Homeland Security and National Security Agency) has grown from about four students to roughly 40 in five years; data science and biomedical science showed recent enrollment increases.

Workforce funds and facilities: Shirley credited the Legislature’s Workforce Education Innovation Fund (WEEF) with a $1,400,000 award to Minot State to stand up new programs and fund the nursing simulation center planned at Trinity Health Center West in downtown Minot. "Those are going towards helping us stand up both of those new programs as well as assisting with our nursing simulation center," Shirley said. Minot State described partnership arrangements with Dakota College at Bottineau (DCB) to share clinical space and programming in that facility.

Nursing and clinical training: Amy Lee, chair of nursing, said Minot State accepts 48 pre‑licensure nursing students per cohort and reported a 100% NCLEX pass rate for the pre‑licensure cohort in fiscal year 2025. She described the planned simulation center in the Trinity Health Center West building — five simulation rooms and five exam rooms — which Minot State said will expand clinical training capacity and support partnerships with local health providers.

Teacher pipeline and Aspire program: Committee members asked about recruiting teachers for rural districts. Shirley described the Aspire program, which pairs high school juniors and seniors from rural districts with university mentors and supports to encourage them to remain in and serve their home communities; this year’s cohort had about 21 students and roughly 100 alumni over four years.

Recruitment initiatives and scholarships: Michelle Sailor, Minot State’s director of enrollment services, reviewed the Hometown Pride and Prairie Rose scholarships, noting nearly 800 students had received those awards since the programs began. Sailor said campus visit and event attendance have risen, and Minot State reported increased admitted students and its largest freshman class in 15 years.

Fundraising and challenge grant impact: Rick Hedberg, Minot State’s executive director for advancement, described the state challenge grant program that matches private philanthropy with public dollars; he said Minot State’s foundation assets rose from about $37M in 2020 to $73M in 2025 and that endowments and scholarships supported recruitment and retention.

What comes next: Shirley and Minot State staff said they will provide additional requested data on athletic tuition waivers and retention metrics for dual‑credit students. The campus said renovations across campus (funded by a mix of state allocations, private fundraising and student fees) will support new program space, including the lower level of the library for the engineering lab and downtown space for simulation training.

Representative Sanford and other lawmakers pressed Minot State on teacher recruitment and dual‑credit conversions; Shirley and enrollment staff agreed to return specific retention and waiver numbers on request.